Willie Ross School for the Deaf in Longmeadow announced a new chair of its Board of Trustees, Claire Sanders. Sanders is the second deaf chair of the board in the school’s history, following the late George Balsley II, who served as chair until his passing in early 2025.
Sanders, who has been teaching in the field of American Sign Language and deaf studies for more than 25 years, serves as a Deaf Studies department chair and a professor of language and culture at Holyoke Community College. Sanders has also taught at numerous area colleges including Hampshire College, Keene State College, Mt. Wachusett Community College, River Valley Community College and Greenfield Community College.
Sanders holds a master’s-level national certification from the American Sign Language Teachers Association. Sanders is also a board member of the Western Massachusetts Association for the Deaf. She has also led workshops related to the growing field of deaf studies.
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The Board of Directors of Big Y Foods Inc. has announced the appointment of Christian P. D’Amour as senior director of supermarket operations. D’Amour will be responsible for the oversight of the five supermarket districts ensuring operational excellence across all locations.
D’Amour is a third-generation D’Amour family member. He is a grandson of Big Y co-founder Gerald E. D’Amour and son of executive chairman Charles L. D’Amour. He reports to Nicole D’Amour Schneider, senior vice president of retail operations and customer experience. He began his career at Big Y at the age of 14 as a part-time service clerk.
He holds a bachelor of arts degree from St. Michael’s College in Vermont and spent a semester studying at the National University of Ireland at Galway.
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The Pioneer Valley Planning Commission has named Kenneth Comia as the new director of the Land Use and Environment Department. In June 2025, PVPC elevated Catherine Ratté to the role of deputy executive director of PVPC, ensuring a smooth leadership transition. Ratté continued in this role through the end of the year, when she retired after a 27-year career advancing regional planning and community development across the Pioneer Valley.
Comia joined the PVPC in 2019. He is a certified planner who leads municipal zoning and comprehensive‑planning services across the Pioneer Valley.
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Florence Bank has hired a commercial loan officer and a branch manager.
Xiaolei Hua, of South Hadley, has joined the bank as vice president / commercial loan officer, while Shadia Coley, of Enfield, Connecticut, has been named branch manager / branch officer of the bank’s new Holyoke office set to open in 2026.
Hua has 20 years of banking experience, and prior to joining Florence Bank, he held the positions of commercial credit officer, assistant vice president / portfolio manager and vice president / commercial lending.
Hua holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a master’s in business administration from the same institution. He also attended the New England School for Financial Studies at Babson College, which trains banking professionals.
He is a board member and Finance & Investment Committee member for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts and a board member and Finance Committee member for Tech Foundry.
Coley has over 10 years of banking experience and previously held the positions of assistant branch manager / business specialist and branch manager. In addition to managing Florence Bank’s newest branch, she will oversee community outreach and engagement, team leadership and coaching and customer service.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Southern New Hampshire University and a master’s in business administration with a concentration in finance, also from SNHU. She sits on the board for Dress for Success Western Massachusetts.
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MiraVista Behavioral Health Center announces that Dr. Dean Singer, a dual board-certified physician in family and addiction medicine, has joined its team
He has worked across multiple care settings in Western Massachusetts, bridging the gap between primary care and behavioral health.
Singer will serve as the physician in the organization’s Opioid Treatment Program, providing medication-assisted treatment and clinical support to individuals navigating recovery from opioid use disorder.
Singer currently serves as owner and chief medical officer of Bridge Primary in Greenfield, a community-based practice offering both primary care and addiction services. His previous roles include addiction physician consultant for Clinical and Support Options’ Office-Based Addiction Treatment Program, medical director at Health Care Resource Centers Methadone Clinic in Greenfield, and inpatient addiction consultant at Baystate Franklin Medical Center.
Singer completed his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine at the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine and is dual board-certified in family medicine and addiction medicine.
